Highest Ranking House Republicans Vote Against Bipartisan Gun Control Bill

The highest-ranking Republicans in the House, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-California) and Minority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana), voted against the bipartisan gun control bill approved by the Senate, which passed 234-193 on Friday.

Both leaders tried to convince other Republicans in the House to follow their lead and vote against the bill, but 15 GOP members voted for it anyway.

Mitch McConnell was one of 14 Senate Republicans to vote in favor of the bill. 

“I support the bill text that Sen. Cornyn and our colleagues have produced,” McConnell said. “For years, the far-left falsely claimed that Congress could only address the terrible issue of mass murders by trampling on law-abiding Americans’ constitutional rights. Our colleagues have put together a commonsense package of popular steps that will help make these horrifying incidents less likely while fully upholding the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.”

The House Freedom Caucus released a statement against the bill.

“Red flag laws permit the preemptive seizure of firearms from Americans without due process by allowing any person to report a gun owner to law enforcement and petition for the confiscation of that individual’s firearms, even before the gun owner has an opportunity to defend themselves,” the Freedom Caucus said in a statement.

The caucus is considered one of the most conservative groups in the House. All members of the group voted against the bill.